Exploring the user experience through collage

We explore the use of collage in requirements elicitation, as a tool to support potential end-users in expressing their impressions, understanding, and emotions regarding a system

Legitimacy and Compliance with International Law: Access to Detainees in Civil Conficts, 1991–2006

types: ArticleExisting compliance research has focused on states’ adherence to international rules. This article reports on state and also non-state actors’ adherence to international norms. The analysis of warring parties’ behaviour in granting the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) access to detention centres between 1991 and 2006 shows that both governments and rebel groups adhere to the norm of accepting the ICRC in order to advance their pursuit of legitimacy. National governments are more likely to grant access when they are democracies and rely on foreign aid. Insurgent groups are more likely to grant access when they exhibit legitimacy-seeking characteristics, such as having a legal political wing, relying on domestic support, controlling territory and receiving transnational support.Scowcroft Institute at the Bush School of Government and Public Servic

The Iowa Homemaker vol.28, no.6

Your Dream Man, Margaret Wallace, page 3 County Home Economist, Ruth Foster, page 4 Mirror, Mirror On the Wall, Emogene Olson, page 6 I Resolve, Katherine Williams, page 7 These Women Drivers, Merritt Bailey, page 8 Vicky, Jo Ann Breckenridge, page 10 What’s New, Peggy Krenek, page 14 American Dietetic Association, Christine Thomson, page 1

ECOSSE: Estimating Carbon in Organic Soils - Sequestration and Emissions: Final Report

Background Climate change, caused by greenhouse gas ( GHG) emissions, is one of the most serious threats facing our planet, and is of concern at both UK and devolved administration levels. Accurate predictions for the effects of changes in climate and land use on GHG emissions are vital for informing land use policy. Models which are currently used to predict differences in soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) caused by these changes, have been derived from those based on mineral soils or deep peat. None of these models is entirely satisfactory for describing what happens to organic soils following land-use change. Reports of Scottish GHG emissions have revealed that approximately 15% of Scotland's total emissions come from land use changes on Scotland's high carbon soils; the figure is much lower for Wales. It is therefore important to reduce the major uncertainty in assessing the carbon store and flux from land use change on organic soils, especially those which are too shallow to be deep peats but still contain a large reserve of C. In order to predict the response of organic soils to external change we need to develop a model that reflects more accurately the conditions of these soils. The development of a model for organic soils will help to provide more accurate values of net change to soil C and N in response to changes in land use and climate and may be used to inform reporting to UKGHG inventories. Whilst a few models have been developed to describe deep peat formation and turnover, none have so far been developed suitable for examining the impacts of land-use and climate change on the types of organic soils often subject to land-use change in Scotland and Wales. Organic soils subject to land-use change are often (but not exclusively) characterised by a shallower organic horizon than deep peats (e.g. organo-mineral soils such as peaty podzols and peaty gleys). The main aim of the model developed in this project was to simulate the impacts of land-use and climate change in these types of soils. The model is, a) be driven by commonly available meteorological data and soil descriptions, b) able to simulate and predict C and N turnover in organic soils, c) able to predict the impacts of land-use change and climate change on C and N stores in organic soils in Scotland and Wales. In addition to developing the model, we have undertaken a number of other modelling exercises, literature searches, desk studies, data base exercises, and experimentation to answer a range of other questions associated with the responses of organic soils in Scotland and Wales to climate and land-use change. Aims of the ECOSSE project The aims of the study were: To develop a new model of C and N dynamics that reflects conditions in organic soils in Scotland and Wales and predicts their likely responses to external factors To identify the extent of soils that can be considered organic in Scotland and Wales and provide an estimate of the carbon contained within them To predict the contribution of CO 2, nitrous oxide and methane emissions from organic soils in Scotland and Wales, and provide advice on how changes in land use and climate will affect the C and N balance In order to fulfil these aims, the project was broken down into modules based on these objectives and the report uses that structure. The first aim is covered by module 2, the second aim by module 1, and the third aim by modules 3 to 8. Many of the modules are inter-linked. Objectives of the ECOSSE project The main objectives of the project were to: Describe the distribution of organic soils in Scotland and Wales and provide an estimate of the C contained in them Develop a model to simulate C and N cycling in organic soils and provide predictions as to how they will respond to land-use, management and climate change using elements of existing peat, mineral and forest soil models Provide predictive statements on the effects of land-use and climate change on organic soils and the relationships to GHG emissions, including CO 2, nitrous oxide and methane. Provide predictions on the effects of land use change and climate change on the release of Dissolved Organic Matter from organic soils Provide estimates of C loss from scenarios of accelerated erosion of organic soils Suggest best options for mitigating C and N loss from organic soils Provide guidelines on the likely effects of changing land-use from grazing or semi-natural vegetation to forestry on C and N in organic soils Use the land-use change data derived from the Countryside Surveys of Scotland and Wales to provide predictive estimates for changes to C and N balance in organic soils over time

The Iowa Homemaker vol.28, no.2

Tantalizing Appetites, Jane Haselton, page 3 Keep Pammel Young Set Busy, Barbara Parsons, page 4 Chart Your Course, page 6 What’s New In Home Economics, Peggy Krenek, page 7 You’ll Be a Calm, Lovely Bride, Janet Sutherland, page 8 Predict Future Positions, Ruth Hackett, page 9 Vicky Takes to the Sun, Jo Ann Breckenridge, page 10 Home Economics Women Invade The Air Waves, Jeanne Wallerius, page 11 Your Summer Work Pays Dividends, Christine Thomson, page 12 Let Your Personality Speak For You, Margaret Rutherford, page 14 Here’s An Idea, page 16 Seniors Advise on Elective Choices, Jo Ann Breckenridge, page 19 Keeping Up With Today, Mary West, page 20 Alums in the News, Patricia Close, page 2

Frequency of Private Spiritual Activity and Cardiovascular Risk in Post-menopausal Women: The Women\u27s Health Initiative

Purpose: Spirituality has been associated with better cardiac autonomic balance, but its association with cardiovascular risk is not well studied. We examined whether more frequent private spiritual activity was associated with reduced cardiovascular risk in postmenopausal women enrolled in the Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study. Methods: Frequency of private spiritual activity (prayer, Bible reading, and meditation) was selfreported at year 5 of follow-up. Cardiovascular outcomes were centrally adjudicated, and cardiovascular risk was estimated from proportional hazards models. Results: Final models included 43,708 women (mean age: 68.9±7.3; median follow-up: 7.0 years) free of cardiac disease through year 5 of follow-up. In age-adjusted models private spiritual activity was associated with increased cardiovascular risk (HR: 1.16; CI 1.02, 1.31, weekly vs. never; 1.25; CI 1.11, 1.40, daily vs. never). In multivariate models adjusted for demographics, lifestyle, risk factors, and psychosocial factors, such association remained significant only in the group with daily activity (HR 1.16; CI: 1.03, 1.30). Subgroup analyses indicate this association may be driven by the presence of severe chronic diseases. Conclusion: In aging women, higher frequency of private spiritual activity was associated with increased cardiovascular risk, likely reflecting a mobilization of spiritual resources in order to cope with aging and illness

Civil Liberties and Volunteering in Six Former Soviet Union Countries

To contribute to the debate as to whether volunteering is an outcome of democratization rather than a driver of it, we analyze how divergent democratization pathways in six countries of the former Soviet Union have led to varied levels of volunteering. Using data from the European Values Study, we find that Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia—which followed a Europeanization path—have high and increasing levels of civil liberties and volunteering. In Russia and Belarus, following a pre-emption path, civil liberties have remained low and volunteering has declined. Surprisingly, despite the Orange Revolution and increased civil liberties, volunteering rates in Ukraine have also declined. The case of Ukraine indicates that the freedom to participate is not always taken up by citizens. Our findings suggest it is not volunteering that brings civil liberties, but rather that increased civil liberties lead to higher levels of volunteerin

High-throughput stem-loop RT-qPCR miRNA expression profiling using minute amounts of input RNA

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are an emerging class of small non-coding RNAs implicated in a wide variety of cellular processes. Research in this field is accelerating, and the growing number of miRNAs emphasizes the need for high-throughput and sensitive detection methods. Here we present the successful evaluation of the Megaplex reverse transcription format of the stem-loop primer-based real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) approach to quantify miRNA expression. The Megaplex reaction provides simultaneous reverse transcription of 450 mature miRNAs, ensuring high-throughput detection. Further, the introduction of a complementary DNA pre-amplification step significantly reduces the amount of input RNA needed, even down to single-cell level. To evaluate possible pre-amplification bias, we compared the expression of 384 miRNAs in three different cancer cell lines with Megaplex RT, with or without an additional pre-amplification step. The normalized Cq values of all three sample pairs showed a good correlation with maintenance of differential miRNA expression between the cell lines. Moreover, pre-amplification using 10 ng of input RNA enabled the detection of miRNAs that were undetectable when using Megaplex alone with 400 ng of input RNA. The high specificity of RT-qPCR together with a superior sensitivity makes this approach the method of choice for high-throughput miRNA expression profiling

Defining the effect and mediators of two knowledge translation strategies designed to alter knowledge, intent and clinical utilization of rehabilitation outcome measures: a study protocol [NCT00298727]

BACKGROUND: A substantial number of valid outcome measures have been developed to measure health in adult musculoskeletal and childhood disability. Regrettably, national initiatives have merely resulted in changes in attitude, while utilization remains unacceptably low. This study will compare the effectiveness and mediators of two different knowledge transfer (KT) interventions in terms of their impact on changing knowledge and behavior (utilization and clinical reasoning) related to health outcome measures. METHOD/DESIGN: Physical and occupational therapists (n = 144) will be recruited in partnership with the national professional associations to evaluate two different KT interventions with the same curriculum: 1) Stakeholder-Hosted Interactive Problem-Based Seminar (SHIPS), and 2) Online Problem-Based course (e-PBL). SHIPS will consist of face-to-face problem-based learning (PBL) for 2 1/2 days with outcome measure developers as facilitators, using six problems generated in consultation with participants. The e-PBL will consist of a 6-week web-based course with six generic problems developed by content experts. SHIPS will be conducted in three urban centers in Canada. Participants will be block-allocated by a minimization procedure to either of the two interventions to minimize any prognostic differences. Trained evaluators at each site will conduct chart audits and chart-stimulated recall. Trained interviewers will conduct semi-structured interviews focused on identifying critical elements in KT and implementing practice changes. Interviews will be transcribed verbatim. Baseline predictors including demographics, knowledge, attitudes/barriers regarding outcome measures, and Readiness to Change will be assessed by self-report. Immediately post-intervention and 6 months later, these will be re-administered. Primary qualitative and quantitative evaluations will be conducted 6-months post-intervention to assess the relative effectiveness of KT interventions and to identify elements that contribute to changing clinical behavior. Chart audits will determine the utilization of outcome measures (counts). Incorporation of outcome measures into clinical reasoning will be assessed using an innovative technique: chart-stimulated recall. DISCUSSION: A strategy for optimal transfer of health outcome measures into practice will be developed and shared with multiple disciplines involved in primary and specialty management of musculoskeletal and childhood disability